I'm With You
by Elle Leigh
Summary: There was nothing to help the burning, festering hole in my chest. There was no such thing as relief. "Relief" was a foreign word. All I knew anymore was pain. My mind was in constant turmoil. "Why do you care what I do?"


Through the pouring rain I drove. I didn't know where I was going. All I knew was that I needed to get away. There was nothing to stop me. More to the point was there was _nobody_ keeping me there. Even Charlie wasn't a good enough reason anymore. Sure he was my dad and I knew he loved me, but I had lived through a too short period of time where I knew there was more to life than a parent's love. I had lived through a time where an endless type of love was possible. _Was._ Past tense. Pile on top of that the pain of losing the only other person who could come remotely close to truly understanding what I had gone and was still going through. The only other person to promise to never hurt me breaking said promise. My shattered heart couldn't take anymore. So I drove...

I drove through the inky night with no sounds other than the roar of my truck and the rain coming down around me. It was almost soothing. _Almost_. There was nothing to help the burning, festering hole in my chest. There was no such thing as relief. "Relief" was a foreign word. All I knew anymore was pain. My mind was in constant turmoil; always trying to find a way around all the pain. It was literally driving me insane. I was waiting and hoping for the welcoming feeling of not caring, of not being lucid. It just wasn't worth it anymore. Nothing was. I wanted to be gone. _Gone. _Charlie would be waking up soon to find me gone. I needed to be more than gone before he sent people to look for me. After all, I didn't want to be found.

I turned my truck toward La Push, finally making a decision. I knew where I could find what I needed. I knew where I could be set free. I pushed my truck as fast as it could go toward the cliffs I'd spent so much time at recently. A sudden ringing pierced the air as I came to my destination. I recognized the sound of my cell phone immediately and knew just as quickly who it would be given the time of night. Of course now _she_ would make an effort. Too little, too late. I let the phone go to voicemail. Almost as soon as the ringing had stopped, it started again. Not surprising since my decision hadn't changed. There was no need to waiver. Nothing would change if I answered the phone. The feelings would remain the same. I'd still be not good enough. I'd still be nothing more than a tasty smelling distraction. I'd still be a disappointment. I'd still be human. I'd still be everything I wished I wasn't. I climbed out of the truck while the ringing continued.

I walked slowly toward the edge of the cliff. The breeze from the ocean was cool and carried the smell of salt to my nose. I closed my eyes and basked in the scent and feeling of my hair being lifted from my neck and around my face. The rain had stopped at some point, but the clouds remained. I looked to the sky in hopes of seeing the stars, but was met with nothing but utter darkness. _How fitting. _I was at a precipice, literally. Here I stood at the edge of the cliff looking down at what was sure to be my end. As I stepped back a few steps to prepare for my jump, I heard a twig snap somewhere behind me. I let out an exasperated sigh at the fact that someone had managed to find me. I turned around expecting to see one of the guys from the rez or maybe even Charlie.

Instead of seeing someone familiar, I was met with a set of completely unfamiliar red eyes. I knew I should be afraid. I knew what those eyes meant; however, given what my plans had been, I didn't see any reason to be scared. He stood there as still as could be, making his vampirism blatantly obvious. He was about 6'2'' with a muscular build. This was no teenage vampire. He was clearly in his mid-twenties when changed. The well-sculpted biceps made it obvious he had been no stranger to hard work before becoming immortal. His brown hair was short, cut in a way that seemed militaristic. Maybe what would be considered a high and tight. He wore a well-fitting t-shirt that showed off his perfect torso, a pair of non-descript blue jeans, and boots. None of it screamed vampire and to someone not in the know, he would have gotten by. However, I _was_ in the know. I knew exactly what he was and what he intended to do.

"I know what you are and what you want. Just take it. Take my blood." I moved my hair to my right shoulder and angled my head so my neck was better exposed. This would leave no question that I knew what he was. He would have no choice but to kill me now. His honey and silk voice sounded in the night and brought me up short.

"Now that's a mighty odd thing to say, darlin'. Why would I want that precious blood of yours?"

He took a few steps forward to bring himself closer to me. I stood looking at him with an eyebrow quirked. Really? Was he honestly going to play dumb?

"Look, I'm not here to play games. I know you're a vampire. I can tell by your red eyes that you're a human drinker. Just drain me already," I said in a voice that failed to hide my annoyance. His only response was to smirk at me. That only annoyed me further, so I took a step backwards toward the edge of the cliff. If he wouldn't take care of business for me, I'd carry through with my original plan. His eyes widened almost comically when he saw me take the step backward.

"You don't wanna do that, darlin'. Why don't you come over here and we'll have us a little chat, hmm?"

I could hear the plea in his voice. I didn't understand that at all. He didn't even know me. Why did he care? Shouldn't he have made a meal out of me by now? I shook my head to clear the questions. It didn't matter anyway. None of the answers would change anything. I raised an eyebrow at him again and took another step backward. I only had one left after this and that was it. The end of the line. The beginnings of a feeling of relief came with that thought. It occurred to me I should be disturbed, but I wasn't. I kept my eyes on the mysterious vampire in front of me knowing he could dash to me before I could blink and bring me away from the edge of the cliff. I couldn't believe he hadn't done it already to be honest.

I was growing very tired. I just wanted to be done with all of this. I was tired of trying to figure out what this vampire wanted. I was tired of hurting. I was tired of being. I was just tired. I felt my body begin to sag from the emotional and physical exhaustion, so I took the last step backward and once again put myself on the precipice. The vampire in front of me was beginning to panic. I could see it in his eyes. His body was even betraying him. I could see the slight tremble in his limbs as he held himself back from pouncing on me to drag me away from the cliff's edge. His eyes were searching mine, seemingly trying to see into my soul. I felt the questions from before come slamming back into my head as I tried to figure out why he cared.

"Why do you care what I do," I finally asked. He stood there seeming to debate with himself as to what he should say. After about a minute with still no answer, I shook my head at myself for thinking he would actually have an answer for that question. Looking him in the eye I said, "Time's up," and stepped off the edge of the cliff.

Before I could feel any sort of rush from falling, a cold hand managed to grab my hand and haul me back up. In a blur of chaos, I finally found myself seated in the bed of my truck with a very disgruntled looking vampire in front of me. He was breathing harshly despite his not needing oxygen. He stepped up to me and got as close as he could before placing his hands on either side of my body. I knew his proximity should bother me, but for whatever reason it didn't. His burgundy eyes stared forcefully into my brown ones. If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was on the verge of tears. I raised my right hand and placed it on his cheek only to have him lean into it and turn slightly to place a kiss on the inside of my wrist. I sucked in a breath through my nose at the sensation of his cool lips on some rather sensitive skin. The sudden inhalation brought his scent of fresh cut grass and summer heat to my nose. I closed my eyes to bask in the relaxation the scent brought only to feel a cool hand cup my cheek.

I opened my eyes to see him staring at me, a small smile playing on his lips. His thumb stroked across my cheek gently.

"I care because you're with me."

"I'm with you," I asked.

"Yes, darlin'. Forever."

"I'm with you."

There was no questioning it this time. I felt it in my bones. It was right.

"I'm with you."

* * *

><p><em>I'm standing on a bridge<br>I'm waiting in the dark  
>I thought that you'd be here by now<br>There's nothing but the rain  
>No footsteps on the ground<br>I'm listening but there's no sound_

_Isn't anyone tryin' to find me?_  
><em>Won't somebody come take me home?<em>  
><em>It's a damn cold night<em>  
><em>Trying to figure out this life<em>  
><em>Won't you take me by the hand<em>  
><em>Take me somewhere new<em>  
><em>I don't know who you are<em>  
><em>But I... I'm with you<em>  
><em>I'm with you<em>

_I'm looking for a place_  
><em>I'm searching for a face<em>  
><em>Is anybody here I know?<em>  
><em>'Cause nothing's going right<em>  
><em>And everything's a mess<em>  
><em>And no one likes to be alone<em>

_Isn't anyone tryin' to find me?_  
><em>Won't somebody come take me home?<em>  
><em>It's a damn cold night<em>  
><em>Trying to figure out this life<em>  
><em>Won't you take me by the hand<em>  
><em>Take me somewhere new<em>  
><em>I don't know who you are<em>  
><em>But I... I'm with you<em>  
><em>I'm with you<em>

_Oh why is everything so confusing?_  
><em>Maybe I'm just out of my mind<em>  
><em>Yeah-he-yaa, Yeah-he-yah, Yeah-he-yah, Yeah-he-yah, Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!<em>

_It's a damn cold night_  
><em>Trying to figure out this life<em>  
><em>Won't you take me by the hand<em>  
><em>Take me somewhere new<em>  
><em>I don't know who you are<em>  
><em>But I... I'm with you<em>  
><em>I'm with you<em>

_Take me by the hand_  
><em>Take me somewhere new<em>  
><em>I don't know who you are<em>  
><em>But I... I'm with you<em>  
><em>I'm with you<em>

_Take me by the hand_  
><em>Take me somewhere new<em>  
><em>I don't know who you are<em>  
><em>But I... I'm with you<em>  
><em>I'm with you<em>  
><em>I'm with you...<em>

"I'm With You" by Avril Lavigne

**A/N:** Hello again, everyone! I decided to go a little dark and angsty for this one. And again, I seemed to have left it rather open-ended. Perhaps there will be more in the future? *shrugs* We'll see what you readers have to say. I know this isn't all romantic or lemony like my previous one shot, but that just wasn't in the works for this one. If I continue this or do a full-length version, I'm sure Peter and Bella would get to that point. This particular piece is about the pain and how the song works in conjunction with that pain.

With regard to my Bella/Carlisle Christmas one shot: I got nothing but positive [written] reviews. There were a lot more readers than actual reviewers, so I'm hoping that's a good sign as well. Most asked/requested that it be continued into a full-length story. That is still very much in the works, but I'm taking a little time to focus on one shots right now. Because I'm new to this, I have random ideas coming at me almost all the time and so I'm finding it a little difficult to focus on one story right now. I'm hoping if I can get some of this excess creativity out of my system, I'll be able to better focus on a specific storyline. So have no fear! Although there is nothing new on that front, I will be continuing. I just need to get into the right frame of mind so I make sure I'm bringing you guys the best story I'm capable of. :-)

Thanks for reading. I hope you liked it. Please feel free to leave a review and let me know! Oh, and today's my birthday so go me. LOL! :-D

Elle


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